Soccer Monks

I’m back in Shan State today (at least in my cyber state of mind) with the novice monks from the Tat Ein Monastery. Like most men and boys in Myanmar, these guys are total football fanatics. When not studying their Buddhist texts, they are more than willing to kick around a football — what’s called a soccer ball back in the USA — either inside or outside the monastery. Unlike at some more well-to-do monasteries in Myanmar, the monks at Tat Ein don’t have access to a TV, their football cravings are confined to actually playing the game.

 

Before I arrived in Nyaungshwe this time, I bought the monks a new football in Yangon. It wasn’t that expensive but it was certainly of much better quality than the beat-up ball they had been using. They might be novice monks, but that shouldn’t prevent them from playing a little football once in a while. And as you can see from these photos, they certainly get a kick out of doing just that!

 

 

 

Sanda Tika: Novice Monk Photographer

My guest photographer today is Sanda Tika, a 12-year-old novice monk from the monastery in Shan State’s Tat Ein village. His self portrait photo is posted above. I don’t think I’ve ever seen this kid without a huge grin on his face. He’s just one of those playful, perpetually happy kids who seem unfazed but the occasional chaos surrounding them.

It seemed like wherever I wandered around the village and the monastery (and at the primary school, although Sanda Tika doesn’t attend classes there; he studies separately at the monastery) this time — and especially on our road trip to Taunggyi and Kakku, Sanda Tika was always there, shadowing me every step of the way. Okay, there were times that I saw him studying with the other novices, but it SEEMED like he was always around. Because of his almost constant presence, I asked him his name (he gave me his “monastery name” — his birth name is different) one day, and promptly appointed him to be my assistant photographer for the rest of my stay. After a quick crash course in the basics, he was more than ready to use the camera. The photos you see today are all ones that he took.  

 

At the park in Taunggyi, they have a bizarre new addition: huge plaster replicas of the characters from The Flintstones! Yes, there were Fred and Wilma, along Barney and Betty (alas, Bam Bam was nowhere to be found), ready and waiting to pose for photos. And the students and teachers got really excited about doing just that, running up and hugging the goofy characters. I don’t think any of these kids have ever seen a Flintstones cartoon in their lives, but they just couldn’t resist the silliness of the idea. And neither could Sanda Tika!

 

 

 

Taunggyi with the Kids: The Trip Pt. 2

And then it was time for the park. Historic site are interesting, but the kids always love the park. After visiting Kakku we spent some time in Taunggyi on the way back to Nyaungshwe. I had ambitious plans for the afternoon; we’d stop by the Shan Museum in town, visit a few temples, and then spend an hour or two at the park and mini-zoo at the edge of town. Well, we were running a bit late by the time we arrived in Taunggyi so we didn’t get to do half of those things, but at least we had enough time to visit one revered hilltop pagoda and the park.

 

As part of the admission to the park we all got free drinks. I assumed that this meant some sort of watered-down soft drinks, but it turned out to be hot coffee! Sort of a strange drink to offer to children, but then again I reckon it beats giving them Coke or something other sugary crap. We walked around the attractive little park (they’ve done some landscaping work on it since I was last there over a year ago and it’s looking much nicer), stopping first to see the collection of animals: frisky monkeys, cute rabbits, tiny turtles, a few deer, some noisy ducks, and a couple of sleeping bears. I kept asking the kids: “Where are the crocodiles?” … “Where are the snakes?” … but despite their finest investigative efforts they couldn’t turn up any. Maybe that’s just as well!

 

After the zoo, we walked deeper into the park and across the swinging wooden bridge (when it swayed from side to side, it was hard to tell if the children’s screams were ones of delight or fright), and took more photos. Throughout the day I was amazed at the variety, and volume, of snacks that the youngsters — including the novice monks — consumed. Many of them had obviously brought packaged snacks and candy with them (the monks had this uncanny ability to produce treats from the folds of their robes!), and whenever they saw an ice cream vendor or other snack merchant, they would stop and purchase something. I have the feeling there were some tummy aches in the village later that night.

 

Every time I’ve taken these kids on a trip it’s been exhausting; long days and hard rides in uncomfortable vehicles on rough roads.  But no matter how tired I get, the enthusiasm of these kids — their smiles and laughter, singing songs in the truck — always manages to revitalize me. It was close to sundown by the time we reached Nyaungshwe. The truck stopped at my hotel and I climbed out, turned and waved goodbye to the crew, their smiles radiating back at me. Magic once again.

 

 

 

Kakku with the Kids: The Trip, part 1

The first time I visited the primary school at Tat Ein village was about four years ago. My friend Htein Linn, who runs Golden Bowl Travel Services & Bookshop in Nyaungshwe, took me there after I expressed an interest in helping an underprivileged school in the area. The first time we took donations of sandals for the students, the type of flip-flop footwear that most people in Myanmar call “slippers.” After that initial donation I followed it up with sports equipment (footballs, volleyballs, badminton sets), medicine on the trip after that, and then first aid boxes to hold the various medicine and bandages.

 

About two years ago one of my visits coincided around the time of the annual balloon festival in nearby Taunggyi. This festival features two varieties of balloons; one type is launched during the day and the other type is accompanied by fireworks at night. I had already made plans to take the monks from Shwe Yan Pyay monastery in Nyaungshwe to the festival, but those monks only had time to attend the night-time festivities. I really wanted to see the daytime balloons too — they are constructed in the shapes of various animals — but didn’t fancy travelling all the way to Taunggyi by himself. I then had one of those spontaneous brainstorms that turned into a brilliant idea: Why not invite the students from the school at Tat Ein village?

 

I discussed the idea with Htein Linn and he enthusiastically endorsed it. Most of these kids, he told me, had never travelled very far from their village, certainly not past Nyaungshwe, so a trip like this would be very special for them. After getting permission from the teachers and U Sandimar at the monastery, I ended up taking a group of 50 students and monks to that festival. I don’t think it’s a cliché to say that these kids had the time of their lives. Going to new places, seeing new things, the wonder in their eyes; it was an amazing experience not only for them but for me too. Seeing these kids having so much fun, and being so appreciative afterwards, really warmed my jaded heart.

 

Last year we took another trip, this time to the Pindaya Caves. That was a longer, more tiring, and dustier journey, but it was still a fun excursion for everyone. For my visit last month we ventured back to Taunggyi (there is a nice park with a small zoo on the edge of town, along with a very popular temple) and further down the road to the ancient Pa-O stupa ruins in Kakku.

 

We had lunch at a monastery near the famous “grove of stupas” (there are about two thousand of these cool old monuments crammed together in the park) and then wandered around the site afterwards. The only problem was coordinating a group of that size. This time around we had over 70 students (not only from the primary school, but kids from the village who attend the high school in Nyaunghswe), teachers, novice monks, senior monks, and a few parents. And when it came time to see the actual site, some people went in one entrance, others went in another entrance, and a few more straggled behind or got lost. Not a single group of kids followed a logical path through the park. Needless to say it was pretty much total chaos. But fun chaos. I wanted to get photos of everyone, or at least pictures of as many of the kids grouped together as possible, but that ended up not happening. I just never saw some of the group while we were there!

 

I’ll post some of the Kakku shots today, along with a few of photos that I took at the school before departure. I have plenty more photos that I took at the park and the temple Taunggyi — along with some that one of the novice monks took with my camera (that will be a post by itself) — but I’ll save those for next week. This week is the annual “New Year” water festival throughout the region: in Thailand, Myanmar, Cambodia, and Laos. The locals are enjoying a long holiday break and celebrating with water silliness. Happy “New Year” to everyone once again!

 

Monks in the Hills

Tucked away in the hills of Shan State, just a few kilometers east of Nyaungshwe, you’ll find the tiny village of Tat Ein. That’s where I do my English language teaching stints, and that’s also the location of a Buddhist monastery, where about 20 young novice monks live and study. 

 

The monastery is overseen by its founder, the revered monk U Sandimar, and a handful of senior monks. In addition to studying Pali texts, the novice monks take turns cleaning the monastery, both inside and outside. And once in a while they have free time to play games, everything from marbles to football. On this visit, I observed some of the older novices attempting to dig up stubborn old tree stumps on the monastery grounds. Hard work, especially in the heat of a March afternoon (one of the hottest times of the year in this region), but with a cooperative team effort their task proved successful!

 

Here are some shots I took during my recent trip. I tried to time my visits during their midday break or late in the afternoon, so I wouldn’t disturb the monks’ studies. Study sessions don’t seem to be as rigorously held as they are at other monasteries I’ve visited in Myanmar, but you never know when your presence will be a distraction, so I make sure I don’t linger too long and overstay my welcome. Nevertheless, tourists are encouraged to drop by and visit the monastery if you are staying in Nyaungshwe. And don’t be surprised if you are invited to stay for tea with U Sandimar. During one recent chat I discovered that he is a big fan of US Westerns, those old Cowboy and Indian movies!

 

 

 

 

 

Students Take the Shots!

While I was teaching the English class at the primary school in Tat Ein village, I handed my camera to a group of students and told them: “Okay, you can take some photos now.” And did they ever! I think they paid more attention to playing with the camera than they did paying attention to my lesson, but hey, that’s to be expected. Here are some of their more interesting — and funnier — photography efforts.

 

 

 

 

Classroom Quandry

When I was in Shan State earlier this month I did a single day of English teaching at the primary school in Tat Ein village. This time around, however, the classroom setup was very different and as a result the lesson was much more difficult for me to teach.

 

Normally when I teach at this school, the class sizes are small, ranging from 6 to 15 students, and I only have to concern myself with teaching one group at a time. The school recently completed the semester (actually, the end of their school year) and final exams, so regular classes were finished by the time I arrived. But they’ve been holding “special” classes for the kids to give them something to do during their break, and just before I showed up, Ma Pu Su and our mutual friend Pascal (from France) also spent a couple of days at the school, teaching English and even giving art lessons. For my class, they combined all the students from the school, including ones that go to the middle school and high school in nearby Nyaungshwe. As a result, I had over 50 kids in class, ranging from first graders to high school students, and a few novice monks from the adjacent monastery. As you would expect, the English skills of this bunch ran from nearly non-existent to pretty impressive.

 

As soon as I saw the classroom setup — with partitions gone and desks moved into new positions — the problem become apparent; how was I going to teach this bunch? I had prepared various lessons and activities, but I quickly realized that most of it was going to be useless in a class this big, especially one that had students with such a wide gap in language skills. If I dumbed the lessons down for the beginners, the experienced students were going to be bored, and if I taught them something with any degree of complexity, the younger students would be totally bewildered by it all. And even if I had an activity appropriate for te whole bunch, how was I going to keep them all involved? A definite quandary.

 

I ended up doing some tried and tested language activities that combined English vocabulary with silly games. In one activity, I blindfolded students (one at a time!) and instructed them to walk in various directions around the classroom in a quest to find a hidden object. Of course I had to familiarize them with the various English phrases first (walk right, left, go straight, turn around, stop!), but even with that short lesson, some of the kids couldn’t get their directions straight and walked into walls or bumped  into their classmates. All of which only added to the fun and giggle factor.

 

I also brought along some small jigsaw puzzles and a few Dr. Seuss and Berenstain Bears books. I ended up not using them in a lesson but during the midday two-hour lunch break I dug them out of my backpack and let some of the kids have fun with them. Those jigsaws are always a hit, but I was pleasantly surprised at how engrossed they were in the books too. It was a challenging day in the classroom, but a very enjoyable one. These kids are all really sweet, very polite, and a joy to teach.

 

 

 

 

 

21 Shots: Remembering Myanmar

I’m thinking a lot about Myanmar lately, as I begin planning my next trip over there. As the days fly by I realize my departure date is less than two months away. Holy monhinga … time to start picking out which longyis, in my ever-growing collection, to wear. All this trip preparation reminds me that I still have a bunch of photos leftover from my last trip that I haven’t posted yet. So, on that note, here we go: 21 more reasons to remember Myanmar.

 

Making morning treats at a small neighborhood teashop on 90th Street in Mandalay.

 

Novice monks bring water for the primary school at Tat Ein village in Shan State.

 

Students at a village school near Inle Lake play games during their lunch break.

 

Early morning cyclist on a muddy street in Nyaungshwe.

 

Tapping and blowing out a tune in Shan State!

 

Students at Tat Ein’s primary school peek under the partition to check out what I’m teaching in the other class.

 

Ko Maw Hsi and his daughter in Mandalay.

 

Zin Ko shows off his tasty new key chain in Amarapura.

 

Drying out chili peppers outside a monastery near Nyaungshwe.

 

Even monks enjoy a game of late afternoon football!

 

A student in a pretty hat poses in front of a pretty plant at a temple near Pindaya.

 

Nyaungshwe traffic jam!

 

Taking aim while playing the shoe game at a pagoda in Amarapura.

 

A little afternoon street corner guitar serenade in Yangon.

 

A monk in Mandalay during his morning meditation walk.

 

Checking out the tunes at the teashop on 90th Street in Mandalay.

 

Ko Maw Hsi bangs a gong in Mandalay.

 

Novice monk with his alms bowl outside the monastery at Tat Ein village in Shan State.

 

Dancing the day away in Amarapura.

 

Students at a village school near Inle Lake play on the slide during their lunch break.

 

Smiles for the New Year

Another year passes, marred by shocking accounts of sadness and cruelty, violence and misery. We are bombarded by so many horrific events and disasters in the media each day that it’s easy to get overwhelmed and depressed by it all. And yet, despite this plethora of negativity, I lean on the side of optimism. I believe that the bad crap can be overcome, or at least counteracted, by love and kindness, hope and dreams, determination and perseverance … and lots of smiles.

 

Wishing everyone lots of happiness, good health, and prosperity in 2013!

 

 

 

 

Monk’s Mood

During his time on the Blue Note label, Thelonious Monk recorded a fine tune called “Monk’s Mood.” I thought of that song this week, not while listening to the music, but by looking at photos that I recently took of the novice monks at the Tat Ein monastery in Shan State. Feeling down? Feeling Blue? Let the “happy monk vibe” of these youngsters rejuvenate your mind. Monk’s Mood indeed! The joy and happiness that these novice monks exude is contagious. For me, there is no better therapy in these trying times.  Enjoy these photos!